


Seizing the Opportunity

by HikariYumi



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, But only Spoilers for the first jail because the author hasnt played further yet, Coffee Dad Sakura Sojiro, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff, Gen, Metaverse (Persona 5), Missing Scene, One Shot, Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers, Phantom Thieves of Hearts as Family, Sojiro POV, Sojiro in the Metaverse, can i call this a, joker pov, mildly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:21:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29695659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HikariYumi/pseuds/HikariYumi
Summary: Spoilers for the first Jail of P5S.Sojiro finally gets his introduction to the Metaverse, things go a bit different than planned but no one really minds.
Relationships: Amamiya Ren & Sakura Sojiro, Kurusu Akira & Sakura Sojiro, Persona 5 Protagonist & Sakura Sojiro, Phantom Thieves of Hearts & Phantom Thieves of Hearts, Sakura Futaba & Sakura Sojiro, Sakura Sojiro & Phantom Thieves of Hearts
Comments: 6
Kudos: 72





	Seizing the Opportunity

**Author's Note:**

> Hello :)
> 
> Can I just say that I did not have time to write a fanfiction?  
> I'm in the middle of a stressfull 1 1/2 months of university exam season on top of my daily attempt to finish my long-ass Persona 5 AU fanfic. I did not have the time to start playing this damn game, much less write down an actual story about this.  
> Unfortunately i love Sojiro way too much and seeing Zenkichi be shown the Metaverse and not beloved coffee dad? I had to fix it.
> 
> I wrote this thing in like two hours, one of those I was half asleep. No regrets.  
> This game made me cry 20 minutes in and if thats how I deal with it, so it be.
> 
> Thanks for stopping by :)  
> ~ Hikari
> 
> As always.. I don't have a beta reader, eventhough I've recebtly recruited Word's grammar and spellcheck. xD

“I’ve parked the caravan down the street, so you can take your time with packing. Just tell me when the rest is coming over so I can fetch it.”

Futaba had already gotten a head start on packing, while Akira had waited for Sojiro’s return. It wasn’t as if he had much to do anyway, he just had to put everything back into the bags he’d arrived with.  
How had this summer vacation flipped into an adventure so quickly? On the other hand, was it really a surprise at this point?

“Thank you, Boss. We’re really thankful for all your help.”

The man rubbed his neck in a rare spout of awkwardness. Like it was hard to understand that his never ending, silent support for their group was anything less than a life saver. Even before Sojiro had figured out their secret identity as Phantom Thieves he’d been turning all the gears to make their life easier. 

Starting by housing Akira, putting up with uncountable impromptu meetings in his café and ending with his constant feeding of all of them, especially Yusuke.  
Akira doubted they would ever be able to repay him.

“So it’s true, eh? The Metaverse returned? Didn’t you kids get rid of it a few months ago?”

Sojiro lead the way back into LeBlanc, which was closed for business, no one had even asked him to do it.  
At times like this Akira was hit with how much he missed that man and his quiet understanding. During the year, the boy had grown used to it, to Boss in general, and while he’d never taken him for granted, leaving had been staggering.  
Akira’s parents were nothing like Sojiro.

So for what it was worth the boy tried to explain everything he was asked for. It was the least he could do. 

“We did, at least we thought so. Apparently, humanities subconscious took form again even if it is a bit different now. Right now, our guess is as good as yours, but I have been told that people like the Phantom Thieves existed before already.”

At that Mona blinked up at Akira in surprise. Had he never talked about that? Sure, the Velvet Room and everything connected to it never really became a big topic, not even after his friends ended up inside of it themselves.  
Akira wasn’t quite certain why he stayed quiet about that place either, it wasn’t a secret, yet it felt rather intimate to discuss. 

Instinctively, the boy recalled the last night when he’d against all odds woke up in the blue prison cell again. In the first moment it had been a shock, panic that everything since the interrogation room had been a dream, that he was still trapped. Akira has had that dream before, but this time it had been different.

The cell door had been closed again and even his prisoner’s garb had replaced his normal clothing. It had been uncomfortably close to the first time he found himself in the Velvet Room, and yet there had been two distinct differences.  
For one, there was no Igor to greet him, neither the real nor the fake one. Secondly, the one who did talk to him was neither Justine nor Caroline, but Lavenza. 

She had seemed confused and saddened by the current events, but when Akira had found the right words for her, the little attendant’s eyes had smiled fondly. 

Things were so eerily similar to the year before and yet so different. Where Tokyo had posed freedom to roam around, explore and meet people, it now felt constricting and empty. So many people Akira had gotten close to were gone to one place or another and thanks to the road trip he wouldn’t have time to approach them.  
Every step the boy took reminded him that he wasn’t living in Tokyo anymore, he was a guest, a visitor.

And yet he’d been welcomed home upon entering LeBlanc again.  
Akira couldn’t help but smile.

“You’re just as odd as you used to be, good to know. I don’t assume you’ll tell me what got you so happy?”  
Sojiro was already back behind the counter, putting together a cup of coffee. Judging by the selection of beans it was for Akira. 

“It’s nothing, really.” The boy said, and it wasn’t even a lie. “It’s just good to be back.”

It was only July, only a few months had passed since he’d told Sojiro his goodbyes the last time. Akira wasn’t sure if he was ready to part with this place already so shortly after coming back.

Following his intuition, something mostly used in the Metaverse, the boy asked: “We never got around to properly repay you and now we not only gave you trouble but are going to leave out of the blue. So, is there anything we could do for you?”

Sojiro didn’t outright decline the offer this time, instead he turned a bit thoughtful. Akira obediently sat down on the barstool he used to have breakfast on every day, as a coffee cup was placed down in front of it.

“You know,” Boss eventually said, already cleaning up the minor mess he’d made. “There’s something I was always interested in, but it never seemed right to ask. But now... you showed that Public Security guy, didn’t you?”

Shown him what?

“The Metaverse. No one believes something this quickly and completely without proof. Even if I don’t have an explanation why you would do that with a guy you don’t even trust!”

Was that... anger in Sojiro’s voice? No, it was worry. Once again, the man only cared for their well-being.

Akira vividly remembered the last time their group had been betrayed concerning the Metaverse. Back then, Boss had been forced to help them as well, a high demand of someone who mostly puzzled the information together on his own.  
Having Akira be dropped on his doorstep beaten and drugged after being declared dead had done a number on Sojiro, too.

“We will show you as well.”

Now Boss appeared a bit startled. Perhaps Akira’s declaration had been slightly too forceful to be considered casual. He sheepishly corrected his glasses as though they had a habit of sliding down his nose. They didn’t, but no one would call him out at this point - hell, no one seemed particularly surprised to see Akira wearing them again.

Upon reaching his hometown a few months ago the boy hadn’t been able to help himself but put them on again. The vulnerability and freedom he had been feeling on the way and with his friends hadn’t been present anymore.  
That place wasn’t home anymore even though he would live here for a few more years to come. At least until Akira was old enough to rent his own flat and pay for it out of pocket.

Morgana hadn’t had understood that part, it was true that the Phantom Thieves had made quite a bit of money during their heists and not all of it had been reinvested into gear and weapons. Before Akira left, they had shared the amount amongst themselves and stashed it away. It was quite a bit, too much in fact to have come from legal part-time jobs.  
Not only Akira’s parents would become extremely interested in the source of the unexpected riches. Despite the official disbandment of the Phantom Thieves, the police force and the legal system still knew about Akira’s past as the leader of the group.

And not only that, with the latest public calling card they’d even jumped back in to the eye of the general masses. Akira didn’t doubt they would figure out his name given enough time. After all his former criminal record was knowledge in a rather dysfunctional and corrupt system and his face - with mask - had been plastered all over Shibuya even this week.  
Maybe this road trip would throw some people off his scent, as unlikely as it was.  
Akira didn’t want to know how angry his parents were going to be.

“We will show Sojiro what?”

Futaba hopped on to the barstool next to him, full backpack leaned against the counter. She seemed in high spirits, even if that wasn’t quite the summer vacation they had planned for.  
Akira had never gone camping so he surely wasn’t complaining either.

“The Metaverse. We do owe him as much,” the boy explained.  
But just as Futaba opened her mouth to reply two more of their friends barged into the café. 

Ah, Akira had forgotten to check his phone. Anyway, if they really took Sojiro into the Metaverse before leaving they wouldn’t need the car yet anyway.

The excited chittering grew louder the more of them gathered in LeBlanc’s booth and even Sophia eventually joined in. You could say a lot, but humanities companion was a fast learner - just as to be expected of an AI.  
Eventually everyone had arrived, bags crudely strewn around the room, waiting for the trip to start.

Instead, Akira told his friends about his slightly unauthorized decision. While he was the pro-forma leader, their plans were still hatched unanimously.  
Fortunately, no one seemed to mind, on the contrary, they were quite thrilled about the prospect. It appeared that Akira wasn’t the only one harboring some guilt for all the assistance they had received and couldn’t pay back.

And after all, it was just a little trip, five minutes tops.

“The timing is great too, while we don’t know everything about the jails yet their wide layout allows us to stay on the outskirts,” Haru told them, kindly regarding Sojiro who didn’t even pretend to wash a cup anymore.

Makoto nodded along, already analyzing the matter at hand. It had been way too easy to slip back into their roles. “In Memento’s we would’ve had to worry about the Reaper and in a Palace that the ruler would take notice. But that doesn’t seem a problem in jails, especially after we defeated its monarch.”

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s do this then”  
As usual Ryuji was quick to jump onto the ‘job’, and maybe even a tiny bit proud. It was nice.

Yusuke, who had been inspecting his phone thoughtfully as they talked finally piped up: “Will we have to head to Shibuya for it to work? I guess we could take the caravan, but it seems a bit inconvenient.”

True. Jails encompassed a way bigger area than any of the palaces, entering from a random point could lead to you ending up somewhere and getting lost. For now, they should stick to the safe route, at least until they grew more familiar with the new system.

Yusuke agreed easily enough and the next decision to make was if they should leave their luggage in the café or not.

All in all, things were going smoother than expected.

The Shibuya Station Accessway wasn’t as crowded as it could be. After the horrible luck concerning secrecy the Phantom Thieves sometimes had, this wasn’t the worst outcome.  
Sojiro looked a bit out of place, wearing his fedora on his head and a nervous impression on his face. If he regretted his indirect request already?

Akira tried to come up with the right words to calm his former guardian, but Futaba was quicker than he was. Might be for the best.  
Everyone else was looking at him now.

“Hey, let’s head out. You’ve got the honors, Leader.”

Oh. Oh well.

Akira had made sure to warn Boss about the slightly off-putting feeling he would experience upon shifting into the Metaverse. The man still choked on his breath as the buzzing and humming took them in.  
It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation, it just required a bit of getting used to, in Akira’s experience.

“That,” Sojiro mumbled as the Accessway around them had completely morphed into the red-black way that was its shape in the jail “is not at all what I’ve expected.”

Quickly Akira tried to remember how much they had even told the man about the appearance of the Metaverse. There might’ve been talk about the different place themes, perhaps even a comment about the uneasiness Memento’s inflicted after a while. But nothing complete. Oh and the vague memories Boss had retained from Christmas Eve of course.

“I- is that music?”

Futaba chuckled as Ann explained that, depending on the ruler of a place, ambient noises or even melodies weren’t uncommon. She didn’t mention the background noise of screams Kamoshida’s castle had been so fond of, Akira knew that place still haunted her sometimes. 

Ryuji grinned, unwilling to let his good mood be soured: “This one here went a bit overboard with the concept, though. But believe me, if you spend too much time in here the stuff grows on you.”

Which was true. Akira could already feel the itch to tap his feet to the familiar beat. It was rather catchy, he had to give Alice that. 

Only now Sojiro took a closer look at them instead of the slightly disturbing landscape around them. To be fair, Shibuya’s jail might’ve had an Alice in Wonderland fantasy theme, but underneath its cheeriness it felt rather rotten somehow.

Boss’ eyes wandered over them all, undoubtedly comparing their get up with the silhouettes visible in the last two calling cards, before coming to a full stop over Sophia and Morgana.

Everyone who knew the cat-shaped Thief for a while knew he was waiting for a comment along the lines of “monster cat”, just like Zenkichi had reacted.  
But once more Sojiro was a man full of surprises.

“Hello Morgana, and who are you? I don’t think we have met?”

He just moved on to Sophia who answered him in her typical unbothered and cheerful way. Meanwhile Morgana’s chin was to be found somewhere on the ground.

Haru and Ann chuckled softly and Akira was tempted to join them. It was too funny, in a way, especially the nearly affronted look on the furry face. As much as Morgana hated to debate his state and self, having it just glossed over without even a little bit of shock was apparently disappointing.

The furry Thief’s mouth started working but no words found their way out. Idly Akira wondered if Sojiro would still be able to hear Morgana’s voice outside the metaverse if he didn’t manage to speak while they were here.

By now Futaba had claimed Sojiro’s attention, spinning around to show off her outfit and basking in the soft smile she received. 

“You all look really mature,” Boss commented until he reached Ryuji and Makoto who, standing next to each other, reminded people more of a biker gang than Thieves of Hearts.  
“In your own way,” Sojiro added mouth quirked into a grin. 

Makoto blushed, still very well visible underneath her iron mask.

Now Morgana couldn’t hold himself back anymore: “Hey chief! What’s with me! Do I look mature, too?”  
The tiny arms were crossed over the yellow collar-turned-neckerchief, giving off an air of pouting more than irritation. In moments like this it was hard to remember what a powerful fighter slept inside the tiniest thief.

Eyes like fresh coffee snapped back to Morgana, expression suddenly serious: “Yes you do. I’m glad I could finally see your real self, Morgana. And hear your voice, I guess.” A little chuckle. “Now I’ll finally know what you’re always so noisy about, eh?”

Morgana, for a fact, could also blush in his metaverse form as he proved once again. As if to overplay it, he turned away and mumbled: “Real self? No, not yet you haven’t.”  
Which was, in a way, true.

“Boss?” Makoto chimed in “This place is rather safe, but in case you’ve seen everything you wanted to...”  
She didn’t end her sentence, but she didn’t have to, Sojiro understood nevertheless.

Futaba had stepped away a bit and seemed to be scanning the area. She must’ve picked something up.  
Now that Akira paid attention to it, he could sense it as well, the mild prickling of his skin, alerting him about nearby enemies. The boy crept towards the edge of the accessway to glance to the ground, being proven correct.

After their victory over the monarch the jail had been rather deserted as far as they’d been able to see. Maybe the shadows had hidden in some remote corners as the desires were returned to their rightful owners or something, but fact was they were already creeping back. As if Alice was still reigning over them.  
Which was a bit concerning to say the least.

By now the others had picked up that something was wrong and headed over to check the situation out.

“This is not good,” Morgana breathed, startling blue eyes fixed on the Dire Shadow wandering around directly underneath them. Akira felt inclined to agree.

Behind him Sojiro’s heavier footsteps announced his presence.  
“What happened?”

Hearing his no-nonsense voice in the Metaverse instead of LeBlanc was only slightly jarring. Distractedly, Akira wondered how Boss would be as a Phantom Thief.  
Doubtlessly scary, to say the least.

Futaba turned her head around, the neon lights reflecting in their goggles, distorting the distortions even more: “Shadows. The enemies so to speak. They seemed to have returned and we don’t know why, we better investigate this.”

“No, we can’t just leave Boss here! That’s too dangerous!” Makoto immediately intersected; Queen had surfaced.

The group pried their attention away from the spectacle below to heavily scrutinize Sojiro, who looked worried but not scared.

“We could just send him back, the portal is right there,” Ryuji commented gesturing towards the dubious fixture no one had analyzed too thoroughly at this point. As long as it had worked it had been good enough.

This debate would take a moment, especially since Sojiro certainly wouldn’t just leave after seeing the strain and concern in all of their body language. Despite the fact that they had faced way more dangerous things he wouldn’t just turn his back now.  
Also, Akira guessed, Boss wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to see them fight and determine for themselves that they all - but especially Futaba would be fine. They’d told him last year that the girl was a navigator and no fighter, but Sojiro wasn’t the kind of father to just shrug this off.

So Akira took the opportunity to slip away into the Velvet room for some preparations of his own. Unfortunately, he’d lost access to the Grimoire’s Persona register - because fate seemed allergic to making things easy for them - so Akira was limited in his fusion possibilities.  
The Velvet Room didn’t manifest in the jail as it did in palaces or the Memento’s and yet, just thinking about it was enough to open the door to his soul room. 

To the others Akira just appeared mentally absent, not in any way different from how things had worked before. If any of the other Thieves had figured out the reason behind this behavior they hadn’t brought this up, actually at least Morgana still had no idea. Which was ironic considering his origin.

The Velvet Room felt off without Igor, even if Lavenza did her best to put him at ease. Realizing that her method of fusing was still as violent as the twin warden’s had been startling. It didn’t fit to the soft-spoken little girl.  
On the other hand, Lavenza wasn’t really a little girl in the first place.

After updating his Persona roaster - Akira had yet to let go of Arséne this time around though - he bade his goodbyes. So far shadows had been more reluctant to join his ranks and in the business of mass attacks the aspect of negotiation had to be cut out. That was why the boy saw no reason to replace his first Persona’s spot yet.  
Especially since it was a bit comforting to carry the gentleman thief in his heart.

“Alright. Boss stays up here while we take care of the shadows on the crossroad. If something goes wrong, he can flee through the portal.” Akira blinked back to reality - or whatever a jail passed as these days - just in time to give his agreement to Morgana’s soft “What do you think, Leader?”

“Don’t worry, Sojiro, I’ll make sure you’ll have a front row seat to everything.” Boss must’ve given her a questioning look because Futaba elucidated: “This is a world of cognition and I’m the master of hacking it for our convenience!”

The girls giggles bordered on manic, nothing too unusual there. A see-through terminal, a gift by hers truly, Necronomicon - because not only Akira had to deal with heavy setbacks persona wise - materialized in midair, tinted green against a world of red. 

“Hacking... cognition...”

At this point Sojiro only seemed exasperated, he must be thinking about how Wakaba Isshiki and the other researchers would’ve reacted to the Phantom Thieves’ slightly brutal approach to the cognitive world.  
Well, not as brutal as Goro Akechi had been.

“Yep!” Futaba chirped as the keyboard vanished into thin air again. “You’re all set up!”

“Alright Joker, on your signal!”

And Joker grinned.

~

Sojiro never considered himself an overly concerned parent. He’d accepted that his ward, who he was supposed to look after for a yearlong probation, took on the role of a sought-after criminal. The very same who got betrayed and nearly killed in the process not too much later.  
He’d also agreed to let his charge, his daughter, keep running a round with the group of lovable misfits on the promise that they would take care of each other.

Sojiro had been worried sick at some points, but he’d trusted those kid’s to know their abilities.  
Not once had he considered to be able to judge them for himself.

There was a notable shift in the air when the bunch of kids turned into Phantom Thieves. Because they might’ve worn their obscure costumes before, but they still had been their usual selves.  
Now, Akira - Joker - had lost the hesitant quietness he displayed to this day, instead wearing a big smirk of honest delight.

Moreover, everyone had switched to battle stances and - oh, Sojiro had forgotten about the weapons. Where exactly had Haru been hiding this axe until now? And was that a grenade launcher?  
For the first time the man experienced something akin to pity for those enemies the kids faced down. They were definitely dangerous and able to look after themselves.

Following a silent signal the group leaped down the accessway and onto the Shibuya crossroad. It was unsettling how similar this horrid place was to reality in some aspects.

They decided to split into two groups, as far as Sojiro could make it out - whatever Futaba had done, it worked like a charm. Four in the front, rest a bit behind as backup.  
Somehow the kids were connected over a comm system that Boss had also access to - seriously, Futaba’s skills were the most shocking thing of this experience - and Sojiro had seen her hack a government server out of boredom once.  
Picking up their code names was easy enough, they were rather straight forward.

Joker - the man decided to stop using the other names, not only because there must be a reason to have code names, but because that boy down there certainly wasn’t Akira - coordinated the group while Queen and Oracle offered info about the shadows they were sneaking up on.  
Noir, Panther and Fox stayed close to their leader, ready to strike at any given moment.

It was mesmerizing to watch the large group move so fluidly and in sync, melting into the shadows around like an actual task force.  
Yes, Sojiro really started to feel bad for their enemies.

For a moment nothing happened. Was Oracle doing something? No, it was Joker who looked around as if searching.  
Then, without any verbal warning he jumped, no, leaped onto one of the deserted vans and then even higher on top of some kind of flag. 

Without any hesitation Joker perched on the spot, three or even five meters in the air, not even holding on to the exterior wall of the house the dubious object was attached to. Seemingly none of the other kids found that behavior particularly strange or interesting. It had to be a habit then.  
Where and when did Joker even learn that skill?

Turned out Sojiro did not have time to worry about those questions because a gun shot ripped straight through the upbeat carnival music. Immediately all hairs on his neck stood straight, reflexes unused in a long time kicked in and Boss had to consciously concentrate to relax and keep watching. Because Joker had fired the handgun, straight onto one of the guarding shadows. It looked a bit different from the ones who were roaming around, even Sojiro could see that.  
Given the amount of preparation and care that had went into that ambush in contrast to the easy disregard of the others, indicated that this one was a whole different caliber.

Had that thing just morphed into a gigantic teddy bear?

Sojiro didn’t have time to ponder that can of worms because the Phantom Thieves more or less threw themselves at the monster. The first few seconds it was nothing more than raw combat, lots of fists and knifes and well... axes. But then it grew more interesting.

“Persona!”

He couldn’t say for sure who it was that had yelled, but others followed suit. Suddenly the battlefield was filled with new creatures that only stayed for a few moments before vanishing again. Sojiro could make out two lady-shaped things along with one historically-Japanese looking, but not much more beyond that. Every now and then more glowing figures appeared, and it was always Joker who called out different names. 

Boss reluctantly pried his eyes off the fight to check on the rest of the group, especially Oracle. He needn’t have been worried though, because apparently his daughter’s persona was a spaceship that hovered over the group. Oracle herself seemed to be inside it, if her voice shouting out encouragement - and mocking remarks - was any indicator.

By now the backup team engaged in a battle of their own. If Sojiro had to guess he’d say other shadows had taken notice of the fight and come to investigate.  
While those really did seem weaker and smaller, they also came in a worrying crowd. Like a stampede trying to subdue an enemy by running over them.

Thankfully, it wasn’t too much of an issue. Queen and Skull happily hacked and slashed a swath of destruction through the shadows, not bothering to bring out their Persona’s.  
No wait - was Queen on a motorcycle?

Boss tried to concentrate on Morgana’s fighting style, just to further hammer in the fact that the cat was indeed not a cat at all. Or at least not in the traditional sense. Unfortunately, even in this Metaverse form Morgana - no it was Mona here, those code names really were something - was small enough to get lost in the rapidly declining turmoil.

As Sojiro turned back to the ‘main fight’ his breath caught.  
Joker just lurched down from a streetlamp, head first and knife in hand.  
What the actual-

The giant teddy bear looked already worse for wear and had flopped down after Joker’s... interesting attack. None of the other kids had any qualms piling on top of it and massacring it with their definitely shady arrangement of weapons. 

“Skull, your health is dangerously low! Mona can you heal him?”  
Oracle’s voice called over the dubious comment system. And yes, Skull indeed looked rather beaten and even bloody.  
How did that happen in the last few seconds? Especially since only three shadows remained in their vicinity?

A green-white hue engulfed the boy who abruptly bounced back to healthy. What kind of magic- ah, right. 

“Totally worth it,” he claimed, wide grin audible in his words.  
Had Skull gotten hurt on purpose? To trick the enemy perhaps? 

An enormous uptake in noise pulled Sojiro’s attention back to the Teddy Bear who was evidently on the ropes already. With reckless abandon the kids fired everything they’ve had on it - which apparently included a whip - until suddenly everything came to a stop.

The monster vanished out of existence, leaving behind four kids who didn’t even appear to have broken into sweat.  
Amazing and terrifying.

Both groups reconciled in the middle of the street as if they owned the place, which they apparently did since the few other shadows Sojiro could see were around the edges, quite a bit away.

“Uh, Boss?”

Skull’s voice rang in his ears, clear as if he were right next to him instead 200 meters away.

“We might’ve forgotten that we usually leave this place from somewhere else... because we kind of can’t get up to the accessway from here. Well, except through the sewers and that takes a while.”

The boy sounded sheepish and Sojiro imagined him rubbing the back of his head in a quirk he himself possessed as well. 

Boss hummed thoughtfully before deciding this communication must be a two-way street: “We could just meet back outside, in the real world or however you call it.”  
He paused and listened to the faint amusement from the kids.  
“But I have to say I’m surprised that Joker-“ saying the name out aloud was a lot weirder than just thinking it “can’t jump his way up on the accessway.”

Was the comm system able to relay his raised eyebrows? Sojiro certainly hoped so.

“I mean...” Joker said, voice deep and grumbly in a way it normally wasn’t. No, that wasn’t true, he’d used it in this video calling card as well. He sounded way older like this, determined and strong.  
“... I could try?”

Ah, and there was Akira bleeding through. Boss had half a mind to wave it off, but the kids were already discussing amongst themselves.  
Their team dynamics also hadn’t changed a bit from the usual. What did that say about their friendship? 

“Alright, Sojiro! Joker’s coming up and leaves the Metaverse with you. We’ll just join you from here!”

Which led to the question, were the other phantom Thieves less acrobatically talented or had they retained a tiny shred of common sense?

Something changed again in the cognition and Sojiro abruptly felt distinctly by himself in a way he hadn’t before. Apparently, the rest had stepped through the other portal.  
Part of the man hated how much sense this ridiculous place and it’s rules made.

Joker’s head poked over the edge of the accessway as the boy heaved himself up with less elegance than before. There were no visible wounds on him, not even dirt. Either Mona had healed him as well or somehow, he managed to evade all hits.  
No that seemed unlikely.

Seemingly privy to Sojiro’s train of thought the boy shuffled awkwardly and explained: “One of my Personas knows healing spells as well. Normally we don’t bother if we leave the Metaverse anyway, but I thought you’d prefer it this way.”

Did he though? Sojiro would’ve liked to see the extent of hurt a typical but hard fight could inflict in those kids. On the other hand, knowing that they had the ability to patch themselves up was a relief as well. 

Had Joker just said ‘Personas’?

Boss took a closer look at the boy in front of him. The eyes were still piercing but the cocky spark was gone along with the confidence Joker had carried himself with.  
This was his Akira again.

Deciding to keep the more extensive questions for later, Sojiro stepped a bit closer and asked: “Those masks, what are they for? Can you take them off?”

The boy seemed a bit thrown by the line of inquisition, yet slowly raised his hand to the white piece obstructing his face. Whatever power had kept it in place yielded effortlessly to Akira and the mask detached soundlessly.  
Oh, it’s been a while since Sojiro had seen him without glasses. Why was he wearing them again anyway?

“Those masks, they symbolize the masks we wear over our souls. When we rip them off in a fight, exposing our real selves, we can summon our Persona’s. They are... a part of us as you know.” 

A tad of melancholy touched Akira’s gentle features, not hidden by big, rimmed glasses. Quickly, to wipe it away Sojiro asked another question, because if taking the mask of summoned their Persona’s why didn’t that happen now?

Akira looked away, uncomfortable for some reason. None of the kids ever displayed unwillingness to explain their adventures, were surprisingly brash and straightforward even with very personal matters.

Eventually the boy met his eyes again and simply said: “It’s different now. This is not a fight.”

Well yes, Boss supposed.

Akira slipped the mask back on before they stepped through the portal without another word.

This experience didn’t become any less jarring the second time around. Thankfully, it was also just as brief.  
Following the chattering gaggle of kids all the way back to Yongen turned out to be rather relaxing. The topic shifted soon from the recent fight to plans for their road trip - Yusuke was very adamant about visiting Kyoto - the Phantom Thieves were just normal kids again.

As a little thank you he served them all coffee, or soda in Ryuji’s case, despite Makoto’s vehement assurance that they were the ones indebted to him. It was a little bit amusing.  
Sojiro would’ve asked more questions but he could see how the group grew more and more restless. They’d never be ones to sit around if there were problems to be solved or people to be rescued.  
Unfortunately.

So Boss got the caravan and parked it in front of the café again, checking and explaining the little idiosyncrasies to Makoto after handing over the keys. For such a big group they managed to get everything sorted in record time - a skill that apparently translated well between the two worlds - and soon it was time for departure.

Futaba gave him a hug and promised they’d be fine before hopping off into the back of the car. Akira shot him an affirmative nod, face promising to look after her, after them all.  
Sojiro would’ve worried more if he hadn’t seen with his own eyes that all his friends would do the same for the boy as well. 

A lot of waving followed; Ann leaned forward in the passenger seat as much as she could to be visible.  
Those kids knew how to steal people’s hearts - Sojiro groaned inwardly at his own joke. 

Five minutes later nothing in the back alley betrayed what had went down here. No trace of Akira had remained in the attic, just as it had been back in March.  
That realization was startlingly painful. 

Perhaps he should track down that shady doctor the kids had seemed so fond of. Her clinic was closed during the summer but Sojiro had heard her talking on the phone to some hospital person the last time she came in for coffee. It wouldn’t take much effort to find her with this information.  
Takemi would certainly be interested in what her ‘guinea pig’ was up to these days.

Boss grinned as he turned LeBlanc’s sign closed for the day.  
Who knew which trouble those kids would get themselves in the next weeks, better prepare himself for whatever fallout they’d have to deal with.

What was this former prosecutor’s number again?  
Just in case?


End file.
